So, I’m planning on doing some travelling soon and I’ve started wondering how much language I should learn before I leave. And this got me thinking about the minimum phrases needed for communication. Really, this number is close to zero since arm waving and pictures can get you through, but it’s nice making things easier for other people.
As far as I’m concerned, numbers are out. You make too many mistakes until you master them and there is a quite a bit of rote learning. There’s just too much risk of doing more harm than good by trying to use them. So, what is in? My current list is pretty short:
- Good
- Please
- Thank you
- Beer
- Cute / Pretty
- Where
- Help
- Hospital
Obviously there are a few more you might want to add depending on specifics. Like “train station” if you’re expecting to use a lot of public transport.
I wonder what’s missing…